this is the second-to-last installment of 7 major movements in rebuilding after deconstructing. tomorrow will be a wrap post, which is really the 8th–“trusting the path.” then early next week i want to brainstorm a few helpful lists together (it will be fun, i promise!). the other posts from the past 2 weeks are listed here. * * * * * one of the hardest parts about writing a series this-packed-full-of-intensity is that everyone is in a different place. some of us have already found …

“the glory of God is man fully alive.” – st. irenaeus here we are, at part 6 of this crazy-intense series on rebuilding our faith after deconstructing. the previous posts are introduction, 1. honoring the process 2. acknowledging losses 3. discovering what remains 4. finding what works 5. celebrating what was. * * * * * the idea of this series is to provide a loose framework & practices for the big themes of rebuilding. for some, it’s challenging & stirring up hard stuff. for others, it’s hopeful and …

oh i wish some of you could have seen me years ago. i was the best-christian-good-girl-ever! it would make you laugh (or cry). and as much as i can’t believe that was me, i keep learning how important it is to honor that stage of my faith as a very important part of my story. instead of rejecting it and being mad at myself for some of the things i believed & the ways i behaved, i am learning to honor and celebrate it. it was …

this is the 5th post in a series here on rebuilding after deconstructing and navigating through deep shifts in our faith. the other posts are: introduction, 1. honoring the process, 2. acknowledging losses. 3. discovering what remains. thank you for all of the responses. hard but beautiful stuff. * * * * * every wednesday night at our house we have a “house of refuge”. it’s a wild, diverse & open group that’s been meeting since the refuge started in 2006. we share a meal & …

* this is the 4th post for a series on rebuilding and renewing our faith after going through huge scary shifts. i have never posted this much in the entire life of my blog! but i do kind of like moving through it quickly instead of over several months and then people can come back and access the material whenever and however they need. this is only meant to provide an overview of some of the major themes on this journey. i realize it’s kind of …

“grief is itself a medicine.” ~ william cowper thank you for your honest & beautiful & hard responses to what the first 2 posts in this series have stirred up. i’m always reminded in these moments how many of us are out there asking the same questions, feeling the same feelings, trying to find our way. if you haven’t read them already, read the intro post & part 1. honoring the process first. as i mentioned yesterday, grief work is a big part of this journey …

*this is first in a series of posts centered on rebuilding our faith after deconstructing. read the intro post first if you haven’t already. in 2004, after one year of counseling classes and a switch to 2 years of spiritual direction courses i earned a certificate in evangelical spiritual guidance (now called soul care & spiritual formation) at denver seminary. i was strangely drawn to spiritual direction from my very first class in 2001. it gave language to much of what we had been talking about …

“see i’m doing a new thing. now it springs up; do you not perceive it? i am making a way in the wilderness, streams in the wasteland.” – isaiah 43:19-20 * * * i know many people who have gone, are going through, or will go through a gut-wrenching, excruciatingly painful and lonely season in their faith called “deconstruction.” where much of what we believe shifts. where things we once held dear unravel. where the number of questions begin to overtake all of our past certainties. …